Rockin’ Tomahawk Half Marathon & 5K

Nestled at the convergence of three rivers way up in the Northwoods region of Wisconsin, this small city of roughly 3,700 plays host to the Rockin’ Tomahawk Half Marathon & 5K, which makes its 8th annual running this year along a combination of city streets and riverside trails, and features ample views of nearby Lake Mohawksin.

Runners will start the out-and-back course for the half marathon at Tomahawk’s Sara Park, which lies at the end of West Somo Avenue near the lakefront. From there, runners make a loop south out of Sara Park down toward Bradley Park, another city park that lies along the lakefront.

After heading south along South Tomahawk Avenue, runners make a right onto West Putnam Street, which takes them into Bradley Park, but then head off Putnam and onto the trail roads inside the park, which wind along the lake.

The course winds nearly a mile through Bradley Park, around the ponds inside the park until the trail meets up once again with the roadway, this time on Bradley Park Road.

Runners then follow the road as it heads north back upward toward Sara Park, which runners then make their way around the edge of before meeting up with the Hiawatha Trail, which is the southern section of the Bearskin State Park Trail, an 18-mile stretch of former railroad corridor that takes runners, walkers and bikers through the Northwoods of Wisconsin.

The Hiawatha Trail, a 6-mile trail that lies along the same former railroad bed as the Bearskin Trail, takes runners over a bridge across the Wisconsin River, which feeds into Lake Mohawksin.

After crossing the river, runners then make a clockwise loop through the middle portion of the race, as turns on Muskellunge Lake Road, Moodig Road, Cash Road and East Mohawk Drive lead runners back onto the Hiawatha Trail, where they turn left and retrace their steps back across the river into Tomahawk.

Runners then cross back over the river and make the loop a second time around the edges of Sara Park and Bradley Park, before heading back into Sara Park for the race finish. Organizers also plan to have live music playing out on the course — hence the “rockin'” in the event name.

Race Weather & Climate

Located in central northern Wisconsin, roughly 180 miles north of Madison, Tomahawk typically sees mild to moderately warm weather in June, which has brought record temperatures here as low as 23 degrees (in 1958) and as high as 96 degrees (in 1963).

On race day (June 9), the average low is 49ºF and the average high is 71ºF.